A life lesson from an aspiring surfer

I listened to Junior, my surfing instructor at Monkey Surf School in Costa Rica, explain what we needed to do before we braved the ocean waves during our first family surf lesson.

Right foot, Left foot, Up, Center, we repeated in our heads as we practiced with our boards safely planted in the sand.

It sounded easy enough, I said to my son as we headed for the waters.

Adding real waves was an entirely different story.

Right foot, Left foot, CRASH

Right foot, Left foot, Up, CRASH

Right, CRASH

I continued trying as my excitement faded to frustration and my body gave way to the swells, taking one beating after another.

Junior swam next to me for emotional support and explained that I had to repeat the motions in my head enough times so that eventually they would become automatic to my mind and body.

It sounded a lot like life, I thought, as I was tossed into the air and thrown around the bottom of the ocean floor.

In order to change behaviors or thought patterns, we have to retrain our unconscious mind. We have to deliberately choose new thoughts until our beliefs begin to transform, our actions follow and then our reality changes.

If you’re scared, if you over-think, if you hesitate, (which, by the way, happens very often in my world of surfing) you block your subconscious (your truth, your life force) from doing the work that needs to be done.

In the words of Junior, “You have to see it in your mind first, just like in your dreams. Then allow your mind and body to do what it needs to do in order to ride the wave.”

Are you ready to see different results?

Get clear on what you really want. And then ask yourself:

Are the same thoughts leading me to the same sequence of actions?

If so, change your thoughts. Not once, not twice, but until you’re either carried away at sea (highly unlikely) or you begin to see a different outcome.

Overwhelmed? Overscheduled? Overtired? Let's Get Over It.

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